As we’ve established in the past, I’m frugal. Or cheap, depending on how you define it.

Because of that frugality — and because I haven’t had a chance to take a heavy-duty vac to the registers yet — I am loathe to turn on the heat, no matter how chilly the evenings become.

For one thing, we’re bound to have Indian summer, right? You know, that time when suddenly you trade the sweaters back in for shorts and wonder why you bothered to put the storm windows down already. And besides, it seems wrong somehow to start using the furnace while I’m still mowing the lawn.

Several of those small oil-filled electric heaters are strategically placed around my house. Kicking them on as necessary keeps the chill at bay, and I’ve also started doing a whole late of baking and roasting.

There’s a real plus in that last trick. Not only does the oven help heat the house, but there’s nothing quite as nice as walking into a house filled with the scent of a pot roast and veggies or fresh-baked cookies.

Those little things make my first floor quite comfy. My bedroom, however, is another story.

Unlike some folks, I don’t have a TV or an easy chair in my bedroom. All I use it for is sleeping, and I actually prefer a cool room as I drift off.

Between a set of flannel sheets, a medium-weight comforter and the furry dog curled up to me, I was just fine until the other night, when it really chilled down outside.

I woke in the night with a cold nose. I pulled the blankies up over my head, but I was still cold. Finally, I gave up, got up and staggered sleepily to the spare bedroom. I grabbed the first bedcovering I found and spread it over my bed.

I slept like a rock. The trick, I decided, was the second comforter, so I’ve kept it in place.

Here’s the funny thing: It’s a magic comforter. Really.

Since I put it on the bed, I’ve not only gone to sleep instantly and awakened truly refreshed, but I’ve dreamed like crazy. They’ve been unusual and exciting dreams because I wake up feeling great.

The dreams themselves quickly fade, of course, but the good feeling they engender stay with me.

I’m normally one of those people you prefer to avoid until I’ve had that morning cup of java. Yet since I added the comforter I find myself in a good mood from the time I set foot on the floor in the morning.

Yes, I know it sounds crazy. And I’m sure someone much smarter than me knows why I’ve been so euphoric since I became a two-comforter gal. It probably has something to do with biorhythms or the stages of the moon or variances in temperature, but I prefer the mystical theory.

And why can’t it be true? If hours of television are devoted to hunting ghosts and delving into the mysteries of the universe, and stories about vampires are the hottest thing in print and the movie screen, I should be humored in my belief that my comforter has a unique property that makes my nightly repose rich and wonderful.

And as I see it, it’s a whole lot cheaper than seeing a shrink to make me feel good about myself and much better for my body than consuming all those comfort foods at a couple thousand calorie a whack.

CATHIE SHAFFER can be reached at (606) 473-9851.